Eurocopter crash off Queensland north coast
 

Just reported. 5 aboard, no reports on condition. Seems to have crashed around Cairns. Noticed a rescue helicopter heading south east (out to sea) out of Townsville.

ABC says Hardy Reef which is off Airlie Beach

Yes. I was looking at a map on the tv which flashed up. Seems I was a little too far north.

Very sad. Reporting fatalities.

Link to the news report

Category: | The Courier Mail

Reporting 2 dead, H120.

I actually took you on that h120 from hayman island to hamo to your jet, sad news

There seems to have been a few too many ditchings around OZ & the US this last fortnight. I believe all the helicopters had pop out floats, which usually work well, but in these last 3 cases none of the helicopters landed safely on the water which would have prevented the fatalities. Pilots can only practice water landings on fixed floats which are easy but obviously can't practice with pop outs. I wonder if this is causing these tragic ditchings?

Helicopter down on Reef
 

Helicopter crash off Whitsundays leaves two dead, one seriously injured - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

RIP

Good idea Nigel, I wonder how realistic the propeller heads could program a simulator for this?

a sad week for RW

Practice emergency landings on water in the simulator is quite realistic, you'll even get a dose of seasickness if you're susceptible to that.

Rest in Peace

In the scramble to get the news out, media seem to have ruffled the ATSB's feathers, erroneously reporting that the ATSB had confirmed fatalities. Whatever the protocol, it seems that sadly the reports were accurate, with the Queensland Police now confirming that 2 passengers, believed to be overseas tourists had been recovered deceased. 2 more, along with the pilot are receiving treatment for injuries.

For those who have done helicopter underwater escape training would understand how unlikely it is that an untrained passenger would be able to self-extricate themselves from a submerged helicopter.

I think the training deficiency could be bigger than that as most of our tourists simply cannot swim. Then there is basic physics knowledge that most of them aren't aware that a helicopter is often top heavy and the consequences thereof. They probably even harbour false assumptions with landing on water.

It's not their fault, they probably only wanted to take a convenient short trip over water without needing to have a masters degree in what can go wrong.

Now when I sit as pax on a Boeing or Airbus and look at the emergency card depicting a fully intact airliner floating on water with all life rafts deployed.... I know of only one incident where it actually happened, further perpetuating the belief that it does exactly what it says on the card.

It's being reported in the media now that it was "a botched landing attempt". There has to be more to it than that...

Is there a common protocol for helicopter ditchings? What I mean is -- when there is enough time to know the ditching is inevitable during an auto, is it common practice to tell pax to unlatch seatbelts and brace? Maybe even open the doors (if possible)?

In my former life as a commercial photographer, I've only flown with doors off and either belted in the seat or (rarely) on a harness with quick release. And I know how to swim, which helped in one actual fixed-wing ditching many years ago. So I was always pretty sure I could escape even if the helo quickly inverted, as long as I wasn't injured otherwise. But tourists won't be thinking like that, and it might be a closed doors flight.

If the pax unlatch seatbelts then, unless the impact is anything but gossamer-light, they will be thrown around the cabin (or even out of it) injuring themselves and possibly you and then risk being swept away from an open door and trapped in the cabin as the aircraft rolls upside down and fills with water.

Stay strapped in and wait for the violent movement to cease before releasing your seatbelt and escaping (if you have kept a hand holding on to something that will help you find your exit).

Australia's Greatest Aviation Expert, GT, was just on the TV. He was asked if the EC120 had two engines.

His reply was (and I may have missed a word) "No, not like the EC130..."

He should be our greatest EXPORT.